SP dares Mayawati to remove conditions imposed on Anand Kumar

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India] Apr. 14 (ANI): Hours after Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati made Anand Kumar the party vice-president, the Samajwadi Party on Friday dared the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister to remove the conditions imposed on her brother.

Samajwadi Party leader Naresh Agrawal told ANI that he would not term it as wrong if the relatives of any politician are included in the party.

"Moreover, this has not happened for the first time. I welcome Mayawati's brother in the political arena and I hope he contributes equally in the party. But I think she should eliminate the conditions she has put forward," said Agrawal.

He further said if the son of a doctor or businessman can follow the same profession then why can't any politician's son or brother.

"If Mayawati's brother has been given the position then I don't think there is anything wrong with that," he added.

He asserted if the public supports the idea then nobody has the right to interfere into the matter.

"In this country, the people have so much time to put blame on one another, therefore, we should ignore such allegations," Agrawal said.

Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Rita Bahuguna Joshi said the BSP cannot be trusted anymore, adding it's quite possible that Mayawati by providing Ananad Kumar a higher position is trying to hide his misdeeds.

"Investigation is in process on her brother's corruption case and the public cannot be disguised anymore," she added.

Taking on Mayawati for doing nothing to end the plight of the poor and needy during the BSP's rule in Uttar Pradesh, Joshi further said the BJP on the other hand works for development of all.

"I don't think the people will trust the BSP.... We will stay in power for a long time because we can provide what the public wants. We believe in overall development," she asserted.

Mayawati earlier in the day made her brother the BSP vice-president on the condition that he would never contest polls.

She informed her party workers that her brother would never contest elections to become an MP and MLA or the chief minister.

"I announce my brother Anand Kumar as the party's national vice-president on the condition that he will never become an MP, MLA or the chief minister," she said.

Addressing a large gathering at the Ambedkar Park here on the occasion of birth anniversary of Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar, Mayawati also highlighted the plight of Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs).

On the plight of SCs, STs and OBCs, she described them as 'double slaves' during the British rule in India.

"Shudras, ati-Shudras and other backwards were double ghulams (slaves) during the British rule: first of the British, and second of the Hindutva forces. They were deprived of rights to study, voting and even doing business. The only work of the people from SCs, STs and OBCs was to become slaves of the upper caste Hindus. They used to live a life worse than an animal," said Mayawati.

The BSP leader said in order to uplift the living standards of the SCs, STs and OBCs, late Kanshiram founded the BSP on April 14, 1984, and decided to take those along who had converted into different religions.

She said keeping the converted SCs, STs and OBCs in mind, Baba Saheb Ambedkar constituted the Indian Constitution on secularism and not on Hinduism.

On the request of Baba Saheb Amdedkar, the British constituted a committee in 1928 to identify Shudras, ati-Shudras and OBCs and made Baba Ambedkar a member of it.

"At that time also, the casteist forces tried hard to put hurdles in the identification of shudras, anti-shudras and OBCs fearing if they are identified in large numbers then they might get 'political key' once the British leave India," she said. (ANI)